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General Climbing Discussion

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Climbing in hot weather 14-Nov-2003 At 4:43:50 PM gemmaw

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Interesting discussion here (though sometime a bit off track).

Being originally from Perth myself, I can understand the difficulty in climbing there in summer. Climbing in the shade is definately the way to go in Perth. Climbing in shaded areas in the afternoon after the sun has passed over is not really good, as the rock is giving off radiant heat and is often not even possible to touch - stuffs your fingertips very quickly too.

Climbing down south (Margaret River) is usually cooler than in Perth metro (eg. the local quarries are the worse - big heat traps), and there are some good overhanging limestone crags there that get alot of shade - some right next to the beach (Bob's Hollow, or Wilyabrup) or the river itself (Wallcliff) so you can periodically cool off, and some in depressions which tend to be cooler.

As for the hydration/dehydration bit, I have always seemed to suffer more than others I am with when climbing in the really hot weather, not through doing anything different or wrong, just seem more susceptible to the effects of heat (always have). I've always done the right thing - keep in the shade as much as possible, wear sunnies, sunscreen, a hat, drink heaps of water, pour it over my head, eat, etc. As some of the discussions in this thread have mentioned, salt and sugar (in addition to water) seem to be important, at least for me. On several occasions, a big serve of greasy, salty chips and a sugary drink have brought me back from the living dead, and I don't normally eat that crap.

As for the caffeine, love a good coffee but personally, when I climb, I like to feel calm (if I can!) and coffee before climbing just gives me the gitters when I climb and does not help at all.